Cliff Buchan
News Editor

Officials in Wyoming and Wyoming Township should know within 30 days if the Municipal Boundary Adjustments board of the Office of Administrative Hearings will consider its orderly annexation petition.

The two Wyomings took their beef to court on May 31 and must now wait 30 days until Ramsey County District Court Judge Michael DeCourcy issues a ruling.

The city and township went to court seeking a judgeís ruling that would force the boundary adjustment board to consider the consolidation agreement reached by the city council and town board. That petition was filed with the state last December in advance of expected annexation moves by Chisago City and Stacy seeking to gobble up more acreage from Wyoming Township.

Shortly before the 30-day ruling period expired, Chisago City filed with the state to annex 1300 acres of Wyoming Township, including the US-8 corridor from Chisago City to Forest Lake and Washington County.

The city of Stacy filed a small annexation request, seeking 700 acres of Wyoming Township land south of its border.

After two hours of testimony in St. Paul last Wednesday, Judge DeCourcy took the case under advisement and said he would rule within 30 days.

The city and township argued that by law the Municipal Boundary Adjustments board is obligated to consider the joint petition that would merge the neighboring Wyomings. The process has been underway since an administrative law judge OKíd a hostile annexation of 5000 acres of Wyoming Township land to Chisago City in January of 2005.

After receiving the three petitions, the state board moved to consolidate the hearings to one process, a move opposed by the two Wyomings.

ìThey basically put us on the back burner,î said Wyoming Mayor Sheldon Anderson this week. He said he had hoped the judge would take action last week, but feels confident the court will give the city and township a fair chance to prevail.

ìItís a coin flip to be honest,î Anderson said. ìI think we are in the right.î

Anderson said the state hearing will likely follow within 30 days of the district court ruling, providing there is no appeal to a higher court by any of the losing parties in the deliberation.

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